FIRST AMENDMENT TO SHELF NOTE PURCHASE AGREEMENT

Exhibit 10.4

 

EXECUTION VERSION

 

FIRST AMENDMENT TO SHELF NOTE PURCHASE AGREEMENT

 

This First Amendment, dated as of September 28, 2015 (this “First Amendment”), to the Shelf Agreement (as defined below) is between New Jersey Resources Corporation, a New Jersey corporation (the “Company”), on one hand, and Metropolitan Life Insurance Company (“MetLife”) and each of the other institutions which is a signatory to this First Amendment as a Noteholder (collectively, the “Noteholders”), on the other hand.

 

RECITALS:

 

A. The Company and MetLife have heretofore entered into that certain Shelf Note Purchase Agreement, dated as of May 12, 2011 (as supplemented by that certain First Supplement to Shelf Note Purchase Agreement, dated as of September 17, 2012, the “Shelf Agreement”). The Company has heretofore issued the $25,000,000 1.94% Series 2012A Senior Notes due September 15, 2015 and the $25,000,000 2.51% Series 2012B Senior Notes due September 15, 2018 pursuant to the Shelf Agreement.

 

B. The Company, MetLife and the Noteholders now desire to amend the Shelf Agreement in the respects, but only in the respects, hereinafter set forth.

 

C. Capitalized terms used herein shall have the respective meanings ascribed thereto in the Shelf Agreement unless herein defined or the context shall otherwise require.

 

D. All requirements of law have been fully complied with and all other acts and things necessary to make this First Amendment a valid, legal and binding instrument according to its terms for the purposes herein expressed have been done or performed.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, upon the full and complete satisfaction of the conditions precedent to the effectiveness of this First Amendment set forth in Section 3.1 hereof, and in consideration of good and valuable consideration the receipt and sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged, the Company, MetLife and the Noteholders do hereby agree as follows:

 

SECTION 1. Amendments.

 

1.1. Section 10.3(c) of the Shelf Agreement shall be and is hereby amended and restated in its entirety to read as follows:

 

(c) Liens (other than any Lien imposed by Section 430 of the Code or Section 4068 of ERISA or any successor thereto) incurred or deposits made in the ordinary course of business (1) in connection with workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance and other types of social security or retirement benefits, (2) to secure (or to obtain letters of credit that secure) the performance of tenders, statutory obligations, surety bonds, appeal bonds, bids, leases (other than Capital Leases), performance bonds, purchase, construction or sales contracts, and other similar obligations, in each case not incurred or made in connection with the

borrowing of money, the obtaining of advances or credit or the payment of the deferred purchase price of property, or (3) in connection with required margin collateral account deposits made in the ordinary course in connection with Hedging Contracts permitted by this Agreement;

 

1.2. Schedule B to the Shelf Agreement shall be and is hereby amended by amending and restating the following definitions contained therein in their entireties to read as follows:

 

“Debt” as to any Person at any time, shall mean, without duplication, any and all indebtedness, obligations or liabilities (whether matured or unmatured, liquidated or unliquidated, direct or indirect, absolute or contingent, or joint or several) of such Person for or in respect of: (a) borrowed money, (b) amounts raised under or liabilities in respect of any note purchase or acceptance credit facility, (c) reimbursement obligations (contingent or otherwise) under any letter of credit, currency swap agreement, interest rate swap, cap, collar or floor agreement or other interest rate or currency exchange rate management device, (d) any other transaction (including forward sale or purchase agreements, Capital Leases, Synthetic Leases and conditional sales agreements) having the commercial effect of a borrowing of money entered into by such Person to finance its operations or capital requirements (but not including trade payables and accrued expenses incurred in the ordinary course of business which are not represented by a promissory note or other evidence of indebtedness and which are not more than 30 days past due), (e) the net indebtedness, obligations and liabilities of such Person under any Hedging Contract to the extent constituting “indebtedness,” as determined in accordance with GAAP, adjusted downward dollar for dollar for any related margin collateral account balances maintained by such Person, (f) any Guaranty of any Hedging Contract described in the immediately preceding clause (e), (g) any Guaranty of Debt for borrowed money, (h) any Hybrid Security described in clause (a) of the definition of Hybrid Security or (i) the mandatory repayment obligation of the issuer of any Hybrid Security described in clause (b) of the definition of Hybrid Security.

 

“Priority Debt” shall mean (without duplication) the sum of (a) unsecured Debt of Restricted Subsidiaries and indebtedness, obligations and liabilities of Restricted Subsidiaries constituting Debt pursuant to clause (e) of the definition of Debt in this Agreement other than (1) Debt owed to the Company or a Wholly-Owned Restricted Subsidiary, (2) Debt outstanding at the time such Person became a Subsidiary provided that such Debt shall not have been incurred in contemplation of such Person becoming a Subsidiary and (3) unsecured Debt of a Guarantor under (i) the Guaranty Agreement and (ii) other Guaranties of Debt of the Company permitted to exist pursuant to Section 10.1 and (b) Debt of the Company secured by a Lien and Debt of any of its Restricted Subsidiaries secured by a Lien, in each case, other than Liens permitted by paragraphs (a) through (k) of Section 10.3.

 

SECTION 2. Representations and Warranties of the Company.

 

2.1. To induce MetLife and the Noteholders to execute and deliver this First Amendment (which representations shall survive the execution and delivery of this First Amendment), the Company represents and warrants to MetLife and the Noteholders that:

(a) this First Amendment has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by it and this First Amendment constitutes the legal, valid and binding obligation, contract and agreement of the Company and each Guarantor enforceable against the Company and each Guarantor in accordance with its terms, except as enforcement may be limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or similar laws or equitable principles relating to or limiting creditors’ rights generally;

 

(b) the Shelf Agreement, as amended by this First Amendment, constitutes the legal, valid and binding obligations, contracts and agreements of the Company enforceable against it in accordance with their respective terms, except as enforcement may be limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or similar laws or equitable principles relating to or limiting creditors’ rights generally;

 

(c) the execution, delivery and performance by the Company and each Guarantor of this First Amendment (i) has been duly authorized by all requisite corporate action and, if required, shareholder action, (ii) does not require the consent or approval of any governmental or regulatory body or agency, and (iii) will not (A) violate (1) any provision of law, statute, rule or regulation or its certificate of incorporation or bylaws, (2) any order of any court or any rule, regulation or order of any other agency or government binding upon it, or (3) any provision of any material indenture, agreement or other instrument to which it is a party or by which its properties or assets are or may be bound, including, without limitation, the Bank Credit Agreement, or (B) result in a breach or constitute (alone or with due notice or lapse of time or both) a default under any indenture, agreement or other instrument referred to in clause (iii)(A)(3) of this Section 2.1(c);

 

(d) as of the date hereof and after giving effect to this First Amendment, no Default or Event of Default has occurred which is continuing; and

 

(e) all the representations and warranties contained in Section 5 of the Shelf Agreement are true and correct in all material respects with the same force and effect as if made by the Company on and as of the date hereof.

 

SECTION 3. Conditions to Effectiveness of This First Amendment.

 

3.1. This First Amendment shall not become effective until, and shall become effective when, each and every one of the following conditions shall have been satisfied:

 

(a) executed counterparts of this First Amendment, duly executed by the Company, each Guarantor, MetLife and the Required Holders, shall have been delivered to Metlife and the Noteholders; and

 

(b) the representations and warranties of the Company set forth in Section 2 hereof are true and correct on and with respect to the date hereof.

 

Upon satisfaction of all of the foregoing, this First Amendment shall become effective.

SECTION 4. REAFFIRMATION.

 

4.1. Each Guarantor hereby consents to the terms and conditions of this First Amendment and hereby ratifies and reaffirms all of its payment and performance obligations, contingent or otherwise, under the Guaranty Agreement, including, without limitation, with respect to the Shelf Agreement, as amended by this First Amendment.

 

SECTION 5. Payment of Noteholders’ Counsel Fees and Expenses.

 

5.1. The Company hereby confirms its obligations under the Shelf Agreement, whether or not the transactions hereby contemplated are consummated, to pay, promptly after request by MetLife, all reasonable out-of-pocket costs and expenses, including attorneys’ fees and expenses, incurred by MetLife or the Noteholders in connection with this First Amendment or the transactions contemplated hereby, in enforcing any rights under First Amendment, or in responding to any subpoena or other legal process or informal investigative demand issued in connection with this letter or the transactions contemplated hereby. The obligations of the Company under this Section 5 shall survive transfer by any holder of any Note and payment of any Note.

 

SECTION 6. Miscellaneous.

 

6.1. This First Amendment shall be construed in connection with and as part of the Shelf Agreement, and except as modified and expressly amended by this First Amendment, all terms, conditions and covenants contained in the Shelf Agreement and the Notes are hereby ratified and shall be and remain in full force and effect. The Company acknowledges and agrees that neither MetLife nor any Noteholder is under any duty or obligation of any kind or nature whatsoever to grant the Company any additional amendments, waivers or consents of any type, whether or not under similar circumstances, and no course of dealing or course of performance shall be deemed to have occurred as a result of this First Amendment.

 

6.2. Any and all notices, requests, certificates and other instruments executed and delivered after the execution and delivery of this First Amendment may refer to the Shelf Agreement without making specific reference to this First Amendment but nevertheless all such references shall include this First Amendment unless the context otherwise requires.

 

6.3. The descriptive headings of the various Sections or parts of this First Amendment are for convenience only and shall not affect the meaning or construction of any of the provisions hereof.

 

6.4. This First Amendment shall be construed and enforced in accordance with, and the rights of the parties shall be governed by, the law of the State of New York excluding choice-of-law principles of the law of such State that would require the application of the laws of a jurisdiction other than such State.

 

6.5. The execution hereof by you shall constitute a contract between us for the uses and purposes hereinabove set forth, and this First Amendment may be executed in any number of counterparts, each executed counterpart constituting an original, but all together only one agreement. Delivery of an executed counterpart of a signature page to this letter by facsimile or

electronic transmission shall be effective as delivery of a manually executed counterpart of this letter.

 

[Signature Pages Follow]

	NEW JERSEY RESOURCES CORPORATION
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer
	NJR RETAIL HOLDINGS CORPORATION
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer
	NJR HOME SERVICES COMPANY
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer
	NJR PLUMBING SERVICES, INC.
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer
	NJR SERVICE CORPORATION
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer
	NJR ENERGY SERVICES COMPANY
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer

	NJR ENERGY INVESTMENTS CORPORATION
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer
	NJR CLEAN ENERGY VENTURES CORPORATION
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer
	COMMERCIAL REALTY AND RESOURCES CORP.
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer
	NJR INVESTMENT COMPANY
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer
	NJR MIDSTREAM HOLDINGS CORPORATION
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer

	NJR ENERGY CORPORATION
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer

	NJR STORAGE HOLDINGS COMPANY
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer
	TWO DOT WIND FARM, LLC
	By:	NJR Clean Energy Ventures Corporation II, its Sole Member
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer
	NJR CLEAN ENERGY VENTURES II CORPORATION
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer
	▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ AREA WIND FARM, LLC
	By:	NJR Clean Energy Ventures II Corporation, its Sole Member
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer

	ALEXANDER WIND FARM, LLC
	By:	NJR Clean Energy Ventures II Corporation, its Sole Member
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer

	RINGER HILL WIND, LLC
	By:	NJR Clean Energy Ventures II Corporation
	By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Name:	▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇
	Title:	Treasurer

ACCEPTED AND AGREED TO:
METROPOLITAN LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY
By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇
	Name:  ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇
	Title:  Director
NOTEHOLDERS:
METLIFE INSURANCE K.K.
By:		MetLife Investment Advisors, LLC
		Its Investment Manager
By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇
	Name: ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇
	Title: Director
METLIFE INSURANCE COMPANY USA (f/k/a MetLife Insurance Company of Connecticut)
By:		MetLife Investment Advisors, LLC
		Its Investment Manager
By:	/s/ ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇
	Name:  ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇
	Title: Director